Improvement in signals



'rED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

IMPROVEMENT IN SIGNALS.

Specitication forming part of Letters Patent No. 50,9116, dated November14, 1865.

To all whom rit may concern:

Be it known that I, ALBERT J. MYER, ot' la-shington city, District ofColumbia, have invented a new Mode of Communicating by Signals; and I dohereby declare that the following' is a full, clear, and exactdescription thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,making a part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a t'ront viewof two disks having certain characters upon them to be used incommunicating by signals. Fig. 2 is a diametrical section throughl thedisks, showing the manner ot' attaching them together.

The object of'this invention isto aft'ord means whereby persons withinsignal distance ot' each other can communicate intelligibly by certainmovements ot liags or other objects, and a systematic arrangement of'letters and numerals or other characters upon movable and stationarydisks, without the possibility ot having their messages detected byothers.

To enable others skilled in the art to understand myiuvcntion I willdescr ibe my improved method ot' signaling.

In the accompanying drawings, A i @presents a disk having printed orengraved upon it in any sequence certain iigures or characters, whichindicate signals to be made or characters or words to be written. I3 isa smaller disk having upon it the letters of an alphabet in any desiredsequence, which it may be desired to refer to in signaling. These twodisks are pivoted togethercentrally by means of a clampserew, onloosening which thesmallerdisk may be turned in either direction, so asto bring dil'erent letters opposite to the numerals, after which, bytightening the screw a, the disks will be rigidly connected together.

Each person giving and receiving signals should be provided with one ofthese devices, and there should be a preconcerted understanding betweensuch persons for moving the disk B and causing different signalcombinations to stand at dif'terent times for different letters ormessages, 'for the purpose of` concealing the meaning of' the signals.

The mode of' signaling is as follows: Suppose two persons within signaldistance of each other should desire to communicate the word are, and bypreconcerted signals have both adjusted their disks so that the letter Ashall be opposite to the number 11. Now, to spell the word are 7 thesignals designated by thecombination ll .for tiefere mede, and this willindicate to the observer the letter A Then there should be made thesignal indicated by the figures 8111orR,and this wouldindicate to theobserver' this letter. The signal or signals indicating the letter E,7which are 1181 on the disk, conclude the word are.

It may be desirable for purposes ot' concealment that the word are/7though often occurring, should not again be indicated in the samecommunication by the same signals. In this case let it be understood bypreconcert that upon any given signal, such as the dropping of' a flagor some peculiar wave of' a Hag, the smaller disk, or that which hasupon it the letters of the alphabet, is to be moved upon the largestdisk, or that which has upon it the numerals, turning to the right hand,say, the distance ot'l'ourspaces', marked upon the disk. Now, withoutcessation otl signaling, both persons, the transmitter and thereceiver', would upon this signal each so change the position ofthedisks that in again signaling the word are 7 A would stand oppositetoand be designated bythecombination 188, E would be designated by thecombination 1188,and E77 by 1881!7 'Ihe letters A It E or the word arethus signaled would in no way` resemble the same word before sent. Inthis way it can be so arranged by preconcerling that no word shallappear twice in the same manner in the same message.

There may be several disks joined together, having various figures andcharacters upon them, and by preconcertitmay be understood that incertain messages some of them are to be used and not others, or theremay be more than one row of' figures or characters on any ot' the disksand the preconcerted arrangement for using may be changed infinitely, sothat the uninstructed cannot discover in what manner the disks are to bemoved or used.

Having thus described my invention. what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

The within-described system of signaling, which is controlled by meansof' letters, numerals, or other characters upon disks that are puttogether in such manner that the relative positions of such characterscan be changed at pleasure, substantially as set forth.

ALBERT J. MYER.

Witnesses R. T. CAMPBELL, E. SGHAEER.

